2 accused of stealing donation money from diner

LEE COUNTY: Two men were arrested Thursday on charges that they broke into a Bonita Springs diner and stole donation money intended for the Children's Hospital of Southwest Florida.

Detectives say 40-year-old Thomas Smock and Steven Bowen, 39, both of Bonita Springs, used a concrete parking block to smash out the front glass door of Mel's Diner at 28601 Trails Edge Boulevard in the early morning hours of October 13.

The men then entered the restaurant and stole about $150.00 in cash from a Children's Hospital of Southwest Florida donation can, a Lee County Sheriff's Office report said.

"It's for kids! Who wants to steal from kids? You know you've got to be pretty low," said Dave Dimel, manager of Mel's Diner.

Detectives say a rash of similar burglaries occurred around the same time throughout Bonita Springs and Lee County.

On November 4, detectives identified Spock as a suspect after finding physical evidence at one of the burglary scenes.

The men were arrested and taken to the Lee County Jail, where they were each charged with one count of burglary, one count of larceny theft, one count of throwing a deadly missile into a building, and one count of damaging property.

But the crime still left the diner without money that was supposed to help children with cancer.

"When our customers and regulars heard, they opened up their wallets and said 'what do you need?'" Dimel said.

Between staff and customers, the diner raised more than $200 for the children's hospital.

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